'Diana Vishneva: On the Edge'

When ballet superstar Diana Vishneva chose two choreographers to create work for her new solo concert, “On the Edge,” she was looking for extreme contrasts.

Vishneva, who has appeared six times over the last decade in Orange County with big-name ballet companies and in her own show, “Beauty in Motion,” picked a man who was instrumental in launching her career and a woman who didn't know her at all.

“It is a long story, my relationship with Diana,” said Jean-Christophe Maillot, longtime artistic director of Les Ballets de Monte Carlo, in an interview last week at Costa Mesa's Segerstrom Center for the Arts, where “On the Edge” debuts Wednesday. “I was on the jury in '94 when she was in the competition in Lausanne.” (The Prix de Lausanne is one of the ballet world's most prestigious awards for young dancers.)

“She was only 17 or 18,” Maillot recalled. “I was pretty seduced by her, so I forced the jury a bit in order to give her the gold medal. I thought there was something very special about that young lady.”

“I didn't know who Diana was last year,” said Carolyn Carlson, an American-born dancer and choreographer who starred in Alwin Nikolaïs' company before spending the bulk of her five-decade career in Europe. “She came to me in France and asked me if I would like to do a work for her. I just liked her personality from the beginning. She was very open.”

The concept for Vishneva's third solo show began with a discussion of the basics, the dancer said.

“After I chose Jean-Christophe and Carolyn, we began by talking about how many people they could see in their (work). Carolyn said right away that she wanted to create a solo piece.” (It is titled “Woman in a Room.”) “Jean-Christophe said he could see one or two other dancers in supporting roles, but it was very difficult for him to work with dancers from outside his own company.”

“We all decided two medium-size acts would be enough because it's very intense for me to be dancing mostly solo for an entire concert,” Vishneva said. “As it is, I am not leaving the stage at all; I am always there.”

The Segerstrom Center commissioned both works and is a co-producer of “On the Edge.” (Sharing the production with other companies defrays the show's considerable costs, which are more than $1 million.) After its world premiere in Segerstrom Hall, Vishneva's concert goes in December to Roubaix, France, and Monte Carlo, Monaco, then travels to Russia for stops in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

‘I am like two different people'

Carlson and Maillot are using vastly different sources for their Vishneva works.

Carlson's “Woman in a Room” is inspired by the films of Andrei Tarkovsky, (1932-86), a revered Russian filmmaker, as well as the poetry of his father, Arseny Tarkovsky, and other literary influences.

“We have a window onstage with a tree behind it and a long table onstage,” Carlson said. “(Vishneva) will have four costume changes, but it's all very minimal.

“My work is about the importance of solitude. In this day and age, solitude is a lost concept. Kids with their iPhones and other distractions have no memory. They do so many things in one day, Facebook and Twitter, and it all goes right through them.

“For me, silence and solitude are so important. It is when one reflects and asks the big question: ‘Who am I?'”

Set to a score by Danny Elfman, Maillot's “Switch” is a pas de trois about a woman, her alter ego and her relationship with men. The other dancers are Bernice Coppieters and Gaëtan Morlotti, two veteran members of Maillot's company.

“I explained that I couldn't make a ballet just for her,” Maillot said. “I can't do solos. It's a form … that I don't understand – a kind of narcissism which I don't feel comfortable with. I like dialogues in dance; I like relationships. So I brought in other people.

“Diana said, ‘Why not?' She played the game. She asked all the right questions. She has the most wonderful attitude about creative collaboration. It's quite rare in the ballet world, really.”

“What I like about (Maillot and Carlson) is that each of them sees me differently,” Vishneva said. “As a dancer and as a woman, each sees me in their own way. It was absolutely a different process of preparation and a different system in the studio with each choreographer. I am totally different in each work; I am like two different people. I hope (the audience) will see that.”

Diana Vishneva rehearses Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
When choosing choreographers for her upcoming concert, Diana Vishneva, who has appeared six times over the last decade in O.C. with big-name ballet companies and in her own show, “Beauty in Motion,” picked a man who was instrumental in launching her career and a woman who didn't know her at all. NIKOLAY KRUSSER
After its world premiere in Segerstrom Hall, Vishneva's concert goes in December to the Coliseum Theater in Roubaix, France and the Salle Garnier in Monte Carlo, Monaco, then travels to the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow and St. Petersburg's Mariinsky Theater in late March and early April. PHOTO COURTESY SCFTA
Ballet dancer Diana Vishneva will perform her new work "On the Edge" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts from Nov. 6 through Nov. 10. PATRICK DEMARCHELIER FOR RUSSIAN VOGUE, COURTESY OF ARTIST MANAGEMENT
“What I like about (choreographers Jen-Christophe Maillot and Carolyn Carlson) is that each of them sees me differently,” Diana Vishneva said. “As a dancer and as a woman, each sees me in their own way. It was absolutely a different process of preparation and a different system in the studio with each choreographer. I am totally different in each work; I am like two different people. I hope (the audience) will see that.” PHOTO COURTESY SCFTA
Diana Vishneva rehearses Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
When ballet superstar Diana Vishneva chose two choreographers to create work for her new solo concert, “On the Edge,” she was looking for extreme contrasts. YULIA PLAKHOTNIKOVA.
Diana Vishneva and Gaetan Morlotti rehearse Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva and Gaetan Morlotti rehearse Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
From left, Bernice Coppieters, Diana Vishneva and Gaetan Morlotti rehearse Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva and Gaetan Morlotti rehearse Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva rehearses Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva rehearses Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva rehearses Carolyn Carlson's "Woman in a Room" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva rehearses Carolyn Carlson's "Woman in a Room" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva rehearses Carolyn Carlson's "Woman in a Room" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva rehearses Jean-Christophe Maillot's "Switch" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER
Diana Vishneva rehearses Carolyn Carlson's "Woman in a Room" at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts Thursday afternoon. DREW A. KELLEY, FOR THE REGISTER

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